


Widow Versus Rapists

by SmartCoffee



Category: Black Widow (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: College, Crimes & Criminals, F/M, Psychology, Therapy, Victim Blaming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:02:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 2,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29166915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SmartCoffee/pseuds/SmartCoffee
Summary: Once Vision asked Natasha, “But why devote your time to hunting rapists? Is it because you were raped?”“Not at all and I resent the question. No one asks psychiatrists if they ever had a mental breakdown. Yet they dedicate their lives to mental health because a breakdown seems like the worst thing in the world. To me, rape is the worst thing in the world.”
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

Once Vision asked Natasha, “But why devote your time to hunting rapists? Is it because you were raped?”

“Not at all and I resent the question. No one asks psychiatrists if they ever had a mental breakdown. Yet they dedicate their lives to mental health because a breakdown seems like the worst thing in the world. To me, rape is the worst thing in the world.”

====

Founders Hall, NYU

The building used to be a church and it housed 700 students. Every floor had wi-fi and there was a spacious outdoor courtyard. The exterior was a quilt of brick and glass.

There was a buzz in the air surrounding one particular undergraduate. His given name was Paco Williamson, a name that generated little enthusiasm albeit there was some curiosity about his ethnic background. But his alter ego was DJ Aztech, an innovative artist blending styles as disparate as bluegrass and Afropunk. It was like that cliche about the boys wanting to be him and the girls wanting to be with him. Though perhaps the boys wanted to be with him or he wanted to be one of the girls.

One Wednesday night, Aztech sent some feelers about a possible performance live from his dorm. News traveled through social media and filtered around the world. The five boroughs were ignited and a crowd formed on campus, complete with signs, T-shirts, and weed vendors.

This was when Melissa Osquist knew she had a problem on her hands. She was the Residence Hall Director for Founders Hall.

She was just starting to get her hands around this problem when a sophomore who attended Aztech’s third performance came into her office and told her in very clear, cold language, that she had been raped.


	2. Chapter 2

“I can’t believe it. He was so nice to me at first. I don’t understand how he could’ve manipulated me,” said Roslyn, her voice wobbling.

Residential Director Osquist considered her next steps carefully. She had to be sensitive but impartial. “That would make anyone upset. Please tell me more if you can.”

“He wanted to know what I liked in bed. He asked if I had fetishes or kinks. I had just met him but at the same time it sounded like he was really into me. I said sometimes I liked being tied up. “

Then he said his kink was consensual non-consent. He asked if I had heard of it. I said no. 

The Director stopped her, “He said consensual nonconsent? How is that even possible?”

‘He said, “Imagine a girl has a fantasy about being raped. It’s not that unusual. Some people get off on the thrill of the unexpected. So you could agree with a partner to act out a rape but you both know it’s pretend.”’

“I found it alluring and he used that feeling to trap me.”


	3. Chapter 3

One of Natasha's interviews was with a psych major named Veronica Slocumb. They met in the cafeteria, two floors down from her dorm room.

"Aztech is a total freak. I tell my friends to steer clear of him," said Veronica.

"Did you ever date him?" asked Natasha.

"We went out just once. We got tacos. He took me to a show of one of his DJ friends. But then he started saying weird shit, like trying to sound tough," said Veronica.

Natasha needed clues. "Can you give me something specific?"

"Like um, you're so hot that I bet you've been stalked. Do you ever get scared walking home when it's late at night? All these scenarios where I'd be the victim of some horrible crime," she said.

"He said this on your first date?" asked Natasha, raising her voice.

"I know, right? But I actually might've gotten off easy," said Veronica, now suddenly showing concern in her face.

"What do you mean?" asked Natasha.

"So if I tell you information that you use, does that mean I would have to testify in court? Because if that's how it works, I don't think I could testify," said Veronica.

This was a moral chasm. Natasha didn't prosecute rapists. She hunted them down. Natasha flashed a badge and used other tactics to appear to be a prosecutor but she really wasn't one. But if she came clean now, she might miss out on a key bit of information.

"Veronica, I know this is hard, but take it one step at a time. It's too early for me to tell if I'll need you to testify or not but there are ways to handle anything that comes up. Sometimes you can just talk to the judge one-on-one. Sometimes people testify by Zoom. Sometimes there are several witnesses with similar information so it isn't as crucial to have one," said Natasha.

Veronica paused and looked down at the sticky cafeteria floor. "Aztech dated my friend Heidi for at least six months. He used to beat her with an extension cord. I mean those brown cords you use when an outlet is too far. She showed me the marks on her back. She was convinced that he loved her and that he was a musical genius. She was willing to give him everything."


	4. Chapter 4

The first sign of trouble was when DJ Aztech announced he would have to cancel a month of shows due to "family issues." He was a hot DJ in his prime. It made no sense for him to cancel shows unless he was afraid of being in public.

Nat surveilled the dorm and noticed an uptick in how often Aztech had food delivered. Packages would arrive on his door but he didn't leave. Sometimes friends would come with white styrofoam boxes of Mexican or Thai food. He made so many Postmates orders that she traced his phone by connecting the restaurants, times, and location.

She kept talking to Melissa Osquist and the campus authorities. Day by day, more female students were accusing Aztech of sexual assualt, battery, and rape. 

The walls were closing in on the rat so he tried to make a break for it. She wasn't sure where he was going at first but he was clearly taking the interstate. In a few minutes, the picture in her mind cleared. LaGuardia. If he took an international flight, then following his trail would get exponentially harder.

It wasn't easy to keep tabs on him as he hustled through the airport - a 5'8," chunky, Hispanic college kid. It was easy to confuse him with other people. He had a white California Republic hat on. Such a dumb move on his part. Never wear distinct logos when you're running away.

The security line was a nightmare as it usually is. But it slowed them both down equally. 

After security, she cuffed him and flashed her badge. 

"I didn't do nothing!"

"That's what they all say," said Nat, doing her best Law and Order voice. She took him to a SHIELD Black Site where she could work him over.


	5. Chapter 5

Two joggers find a white baby alone in a stroller with a note taped to his blanket saying that his mother was kidnapped and raped. The note reads, "The mean man has a monster in his head. Find him by tomorrow or my mom will be dead. Reynolds David Kramer."

Romanov and Hawkeye interview an electrician named Reynolds Kramer about the rape and abduction. He expresses his disgust that a rapist used his name, when a call comes from an anonymous man telling Reynolds to "Give the detectives the fax". By this time four hours have passed since the baby’s mother has been gone. The fax reads "Once there were so cops so dumb, they took hours to get to clue number one. Mommy's runnin’ out of time, so the answer is written above the rhyme."

Romanov and Barton track down a junkie who sent the fax to them at the watch store. He has a message for them but he is too high to remember. After 8 hours the clues they get are the words Hog, Pat, Mend, Top, Yarn. Eric Liebert comes to the precinct saying that the baby was his son and finds out his wife Julie is the kidnapping victim. SHIELD Director Coulson receives a envelope via messenger with Julie Liebert's severed ear.

Romanov, Barton, Coulson and Agent Hill crack the code from the clue words given by the junkie. Hog Pat Lend Top Yarn was an anagram for “Payphone at Lott and Grand.” Romanov and Barton find the payphone only to discover they were too late and missed the call. They trace the call and are led to a warehouse where the discover Julie's body with "RDK is," with an arrow pointing to the woman's back, indicating it means "RDK is back", and another riddle saying that he's abducted another woman.

The detectives discover the body of the second victim covered in roses with symbols drawn on her feet and a newspaper from that day expressing RDK’s disappointment in the lack of media attention.

They talk with a surviving victim of the original RDK killings and find out she was interviewed by someone impersonating a reporter. The phony reporter leads them to Cary Graham. He is not the real RDK, but a copy cat. They search Cary's apartment and find a diary indicating where he plans to take his next victim, an exotic dancer. While picking up his next intended victim Romanov gets a call saying the survivor from the original murders is missing. Romanov goes to her apartment and finds Graham laying in her bed.

During interrogation, Graham refuses to say where Jeanette is, telling Barton that he buried her alive with an oxygen tank good for fifteen hours of air. Barton press him for details, eventually getting him in a chokehold, but Coulson and Doctor Huang, a staff psychiatrist, enter the room and Coulson orders Barton out, leaving Huang to deal with Graham As the interrogation continues, Huang deduced that Graham was emotionally scarred by his mother as a child, which is why he only targeted victims that were mothers but left the sons alive. Reasoning that it might be the key to locating Jeanette, Benson locates Graham's mother. After her introduction into the interrogation, Graham becomes more and more agitated, displaying the tension between the two. His mother reveals that Graham was a difficult child and that she would lock him in a dark closet when she went out to keep him from hurting himself, leading Huang and Barton to realize that Graham is afraid of the dark because of this. Romanov and Barton lock Graham in a closet until he reveals Jeanette's location. They find Jeanette trapped in an old refrigerator, but alive.


	6. Chapter 6

[Messaging app on Natasha Romanov's iPhone]

10:45 P.M.

Clint Barton / Hawkeye: I miss you, Red. You and your long legs are dancing the night away in my head.

Natasha: You're corny.

Clint: If I call, will you pick up?

Natasha: Can't we just text? 

Clint: I broke my second finger, left hand. Spare some pity for a cripple?

Natasha: All right. Call me.

[Recorded voice call]

Clint: Hello Red.

Natasha: I don't like nicknames. I might be the only Russian who doesn't but I just don't. In fact, I have a strong desire to hang up.

Clint: Do it.

[a few seconds of silence]

Clint: I know you're still there. Natasha.

Natasha: Look, I've had a hard day. I haven't eaten and I haven't slept. All that's in the fridge is bread and eggs. I don't have clean clothes and I

don't know where I can do laundry.

Clint: Aww, poor darling. Lemme come over. I can help.

Natasha: I can't tell you where I am at the moment.

Clint: Hey, it's going to be okay. SHIELD looks after its people. They won't leave you hanging.

Natasha: (thinks, 'But I'm not working for SHIELD now.') 

Natasha: You're right.

Clint: Hey, remember that night in Budapest? God, you were so full of fire and spunk. I don't think I can ever for-

Natasha: Clint, you're great, but don't you think it's time to move on?

Clint: What did I do to you? I don't understand. Is it because of my family?

Natasha: Yeah dingus, of course it matters that you have a wife and kids. So at best I'd be a steady mistress. But also, we're Avengers and some

big baddie could play us off each other. Even if we were clever and hid what he had, what if the other guy is a telepath? 

Clint: You obviously broke that rule for Banner.

Natasha: The Hulk is extremely powerful. If he or someone he loved were in danger . . .

Clint: Oh, well that's just peachy. So for me to be with you, I'd have to leave my wife and become more powerful than the goddamn Hulk. Just tell 

me one thing. One thing for true. When you're alone, and you're trying to get to that special place that feels so good, do you ever imagine me

there?

Natasha: Clint, you're being an asshole.

Clint: That doesn't sound like a 'no' to me.

Natasha: I'm done, Clint.


End file.
